Kneeling or Bowing for the Holy Eucharist?

[Carywilson84]

I want to share my concerns about the practice of receiving the Holy Eucharist. I am a recent convert from 2018 and normally I will Bow like the rest of the congregation but I want to kneel but feel scared because nobody does it. Does anyone have any advice?

 

[Vico]

I want to share my concerns about the practice of receiving the Holy Eucharist. I am a recent convert from 2018 and normally I will Bow like the rest of the congregation but I want to kneel but feel scared because nobody does it. Does anyone have any advice?

GIRM (2011) No. 160

… The norm established for the Dioceses of the United States of America is that Holy Communion is to be received standing, unless an individual member of the faithful wishes to receive Communion while kneeling (Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Instruction, Redemptionis Sacramentum, March 25, 2004, no. 91).

When receiving Holy Communion, the communicant bows his or her head before the Sacrament as a gesture of reverence and receives the Body of the Lord from the minister. The consecrated host may be received either on the tongue or in the hand, at the discretion of each communicant. When Holy Communion is received under both kinds, the sign of reverence is also made before receiving the Precious Blood.

 

[Maximilian75]

But Redemptoris Sacremtnum guarantees the ‘right’ to kneel…

[91.] In distributing Holy Communion it is to be remembered that “sacred ministers may not deny the sacraments to those who seek them in a reasonable manner, are rightly disposed, and are not prohibited by law from receiving them”.[177] Hence any baptized Catholic who is not prevented by law must be admitted to Holy Communion. Therefore, it is not licit to deny Holy Communion to any of Christ’s faithful solely on the grounds, for example, that the person wishes to receive the Eucharist kneeling or standing.

 

[Cor_ad_Cor]

There’s something to be said for being in unity of postures during Mass, however, you’re perfectly within your right to do either.

For what it’s worth, about half of the people usually don’t bow “correctly” per the instructions anyway. It’s supposed to be a bend at the neck, not the waist. You’ll see both and everything in between.

 

[ahs]

I want to share my concerns about the practice of receiving the Holy Eucharist. I am a recent convert from 2018 and normally I will Bow like the rest of the congregation but I want to kneel but feel scared because nobody does it. Does anyone have any advice?

My advice is that, if you feel called to kneel, then kneel. I have been to parishes where there have been scowls tossed at people for kneeling, and in the rare occasions I attend there, I will bow instead. But 99% of the other times, I kneel because I feel called to do so. And when I’m not visiting another Parish, I have the benefit of attending Mass at a Parish where EVERYONE kneels (at the Communion rail)…so that takes the pressure out of it.

 

[MD1]

I have the great blessing of being able to kneel and receive Holy Communion on the tongue at my parish, but when I am at other parishes, I usually try to genuflect beforehand and receive on the tongue.
May God bless you!

 

[Vico]

But Redemptoris Sacremtnum guarantees the ‘right’ to kneel…

[91.] In distributing Holy Communion it is to be remembered that “sacred ministers may not deny the sacraments to those who seek them in a reasonable manner, are rightly disposed, and are not prohibited by law from receiving them”.[177] Hence any baptized Catholic who is not prevented by law must be admitted to Holy Communion. Therefore, it is not licit to deny Holy Communion to any of Christ’s faithful solely on the grounds, for example, that the person wishes to receive the Eucharist kneeling or standing.

I read that the priest can place a kneeler apart from the standing communion line, so as not to disrupt the flow.

 

[Teek]

Kneel. It is your right. You are responding to Who you are receiving. Beautiful!

 

[AlbertDerGrosse]

Does anyone have any advice?

Yes I do.

1. Because you’re a very new Catholic get ready to have well meaning (but wrong) people in your parish “teach” you about the “right” way to receive communion. Be ready for this, either to firmly explain why you’ve elected to kneel and receive on the tongue (as is your right!) or to thank them and ignore them. If this well meaning person is a priest or deacon I’d strongly suggest erring on the side of obedience, but ultimately the choice is still yours.
2. People tend to tailgate in the communion line so if the person behind you is expecting you to walk up standing but you suddenly drop to your knees with your legs sticking out backwards you’re liable to cause an accident. This is what I do: As we’re inching our way to the front of the communion line and the person immediately ahead of me is 1-2 people away from receiving I stop moving. The person ahead of them approaches for communion and the person ahead of me steps one foot closer. I remain where I am. Then the person ahead of me steps up to the minister to receive and I again remain standing where I am. Once they start to leave, then I step forward two feet while dropping to my knees thus ensuring a buffer zone for my legs to safely clear the space behind me without any unsuspecting person behind me being in the way. I hope I explained that clearly.
3. Practice dropping to your knees and gracefully standing back up at home. Seriously this is a must unless you’re a gymnast or you’re receiving at the altar rail, a Prie-Dieu, or otherwise have something to lean your weight on when you go to stand up. The last thing you want to do is lose your balance, cause an accident or appear to be about to cause an accident, etc. That will be the fastest way to get an unsympathetic priest to outright ban kneeling out of a sense of safety and regard for accidental profanation of the Eucharist.
4. If you only receive the Host and abstain from reception from the chalice don’t forget to reverence it as you pass by. If you’re now in a custom of receiving our Lord kneeling then I think it’s also appropriate you kneel toward the chalice as you pass (alternatively for those who bow the head before receiving the Host they should also bow the head as they pass the chalice). This can be accomplished with a simple genuflection as you would do before entering your pew.

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

Kneel. It is your right. You are responding to Who you are receiving. Beautiful!

I always have a problem when people declare their"right" to receive communion the way they prefer. Something strikes me as wrong about the language used. Maybe it’s just me.

 

[Wampa]

OP, welcome to CAF!

I suggest that you talk to your priest about it; he may well have direction for you. This topic has come up a lot over the years here and I can remember some people saying that their priest preferred that they be last in line if kneeling, to avoid the collisions that Albert alluded to. Along those lines, I have noticed that some of the people in the cathedral in my town specifically set themselves up to be last in line so they can kneel.

This is a pretty polarizing topic and I’m guessing each priest has a different take and how they’d like to best accommodate it.

 

[jvickers]

I am a Eucharistic Minister at our parish. I have a couple of people kneel for the host every time I serve in that capacity. It’s a little more precarious for the chalice. Handing the chalice down is a little more challenging. So, that might be something to consider when taking the chalice.

There’s nothing wrong with kneeling, as others have both said and referenced in church literature.

 

[HeDa]

I have seen people drop in their kneed while holding the chalice. That seems like it is likely to spill the Blood of Christ on the floor. Personally, I prefer that people kneel before they hold the chalice and return it before they get up on their feet.

 

[Maximilian75]

How else would you like to phrase it? The Vatican itself has said that all Catholics have that preference available to them if they so choose.

 

[TomH1]

I am not going to say kneel or stand for the chalice. That has to be your choice. I believe it can be done. I once went to an Anglican liturgy. Everyone who went for communion knelt and as is their tradition they all received from the chalice. So it can be done.

What I would suggest is two things that have come up. The first is to make your priest aware so that he or the minister giving Communion knows in advance. The other is probably to go at the end of the line. That way you can kneel and there are no accidents.

 

[Brendan_64]

I want to kneel but feel scared because nobody does it. Does anyone have any advice?

If you want to kneel then kneel.

I do understand your nervousness though, it is hard to go against the grain at times.

Kneeling and getting up again quickly, isn’t a problem logistically, unless you are elderly or have mobility problems. You can kneel and rise almost as quickly as you can genuflect and rise, so it should not hold up anyone behind you. And so long as the people behind you are not right up close when you receive (most people keep a step behind anyway when the person in front of them goes to receive anyway) there isn’t a space issue. As for the priest knowing you wish to receive this way, it will be pretty obvious to him when you are kneeling in front of him.

Logistically, I don’t think there is an issue here (with regard to the host) and you are entitled under Church law to receive this way if you wish.

Receiving the chalice this way (as has been mentioned earlier) is a bit trickier logistically, but it can be done.

 

[jvickers]

Yes, that would freak me out if someone dropped to their knees while holding the chalice because of the risk of spilling the Precious Blood. Fortunately, people kneel prior to taking the chalice. I also watch how they receive the Host to get an idea of if they might want to kneel while consuming the Precious Blood.

 

[Crusader13]

I want to share my concerns about the practice of receiving the Holy Eucharist. I am a recent convert from 2018 and normally I will Bow like the rest of the congregation but I want to kneel but feel scared because nobody does it. Does anyone have any advice?

You should definitely kneel if that is what you feel is appropriate, even if you can’t yet articulate why or explain the history and meaning behind it. Unfortunately, many acts of reverence have been lost over the decades and the meaning behind them is no longer being taught or explained properly.

Over the last several years, there has been a push to bring back these outwards signs of reverence and to help the laity understand what is taking place at the Mass and the sacredness of everything that goes on.

Too often you’ll get the response that “kneeling” doesn’t make one holy” or “receiving on the tongue doesn’t make you more devout than those who don’t”. Which is true, but that’s not why it is done. And this is where you’ll find that the teaching behind it has been lost and where the misunderstanding comes from.

 

[AlbertDerGrosse]

I agree that it’s unfortunate we’ve had to resort to such language in defending our decision to behave as Romans at a Roman Rite Mass. Heaven forbid we “prefer” to receive the way that is normative for the entire Roman Rite and has been normative for the last 1500+ years of Roman Rite history instead of behaving like Germans, Dutch, French, Flemish, English, and Americans who disobediently started the practice of reception standing and in the hand.

 

[ioannes_pius]

I want to kneel but feel scared because nobody does it. Does anyone have any advice?

Welcome home!

You are absolutely within your rights as a catholic to receive the Eucharist kneeling and on the tongue. I remember feeling the same way you are feeling, because I also wanted to start kneeling to receive. My advice is simply: just do it! It is a little awkward and maybe embarrassing at first, because you get the sense that everyone is looking at you weirdly as you do it. In reality, they most likely are not, and this feeling wares off after a while. Ask our Lady to pray for you and help you to gain the courage to make that initial leap.

God bless you.